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Air Tractor AT-802
The Air Tractor AT-802 is an agricultural aircraft that may also be adapted into fire-fighting or armed versions. It first flew in the United States in October 1990 and is manufactured by Air Tractor Inc. The AT-802 carries a chemical hopper between the engine firewall and the cockpit and another one under the belly. In the U.S., it is considered a Type III SEAT, or Single Engine Air Tanker. Development In its standard configuration, the aircraft utilizes conventional landing gear (two main wheels and a tail wheel). However, a number of aircraft have been converted to the Fire Boss aerial firefighting configuration, which utilizes Wipaire 10000 amphibious floats, so that it can land on a traditional runway or on water. The Fire Boss can scoop water from a lake or river for use on a fire. In addition to the AT-802 Fire Boss Factsheet at http://www.airtractoreurope.com standard fuselage-mounted retardant tank, the Fire Boss can have optional tanks in the floats.Wipaire Fire Boss Service Manual Operations with floats installed have been shown to produce a shorter and narrower retardant drop pattern than wheeled AT-802s."Evaluation of Long Term Retardant Drop Patterns from Air Tractor 802 Amphibious Float and Wheel Equipped Aircraft", Forest Engineering Research Institute of Canada, February 2006 Armed version In response to the United States Air Force's LAAR program and the growing requirement for light counter-insurgency aircraft,Trimble, Stephen. "PARIS AIR SHOW: Cropduster-turned-gunship makes Le Bourget debut". flightglobal.com. 15 June 2009. retrieved 7 November 2010. Air Tractor developed an armed model, the AT-802U, in 2008, with engine and cockpit armor, a bulletproof windscreen, self-sealing fuel tanks, and structural reinforcements for the carriage of of payload. A reinforced wing spar was certified for 12,000 hours of flight time,Exciting Product Developments In 2009. airtractor (2010-02-10). Retrieved on 2010-11-04. and the AT-802U was displayed in 2009 at the Paris Air Show.PHOTOS: New gunship flies to Paris Air Show debut - The DEW Line. Flightglobal.com. Retrieved on 2010-11-04. The AT-802 has also been used in counter-drug operations in the USSOUTHCOM AOR by the U.S. Department of State as a delivery vehicle for herbicides and defoliants over narcotics production facilities. Variants * AT-802 - two seat (tandem) cockpit * AT-802A - single-seat cockpit * AT-802U - two seat (tandem) heavily armored military version, modified with sensors and reinforced for weapons carriagePhotos: Air Tractor AT-802U Air Truck Aircraft Pictures. Airliners.net (2009-06-18). Retrieved on 2010-11-04. * AT-802F or AT-802AF - An aerial firefighting model 802 equipped with the Air Tractor Computerized Firegatewww.Airtractor.com AT802A * Fire Boss - A model 802 equipped with Wipaire amphibious floats and Air Tractor Computerized Firegate Operators ; *Córdoba Province - Fire-fighting ; *Aerotech First Response (South Australia) - 7 AT-802 *Dunn Aviation (Western Australia) - 9 AT-802Dunn Aviation - Firebombing *Kennedy Aviation (New South Wales) - 4 AT-802 ; *Military Firefighters of Distrito Federal *Military Firefighters of Mato Grosso ; *Military of Burkina Faso 1 AT-802Hoyle Flight International 13–19 December 2011, p. 35. ; *Forest Protection Limited,Welcome to Forest Protection Limited. Forestprotectionlimited.com. Retrieved on 2010-11-04. New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources - 6 AT-802F and 1 AT-802A Fire Boss * Conair Group - 13 AT-802A Fire Boss ; *Combate de Incendios Forestales, Martinez Ridao Chile Ltda.http://www.martinezridaochile.cl. En Chile trabajando para Forestal Mininco y Forestal Celco. AT-802A Fire Boss ; *Croatian Air Force - 5 AT-802A Fire Boss + 1 AT-802F ; * - Fire-fighting ; *Military of GambiaHoyle Flight International 13–19 December 2011, p. 39. ; *Israeli Air Force - 7 AT-802F (of which 2 are Fire Boss) ; *Protezione Civile - 10 AT-802A Fire Boss ; *Protection and Rescue Directorate of the Republic of Macedonia - 3 AT-802A Fire Boss ; *2 AT-802A Fire BossPrvi crnogorski avioni za gašenje požara :: Dnevni list Pobjeda. Pobjeda.me (2008-04-30). Retrieved on 2010-11-04. ; *Ministry of Environment (CEGISA) - 3 AT-802AKeijsper 2008, pp. 43. *Avialsa T35 - 15 AT-802 + 14 AT-802F ; * United Arab Emirates Air Force - 10 AT-802U ;United States *Aerospray, Inc.www.airtractor.com - first us contract Specifications (AT-802) Specifications (AT-802U) |prime units?=imp |crew=2 (tandem) |length m=10.87 |span m=18 |height m=3.5 |wing area sqft=401 |empty weight lb=6400 |gross weight lb=16000 |max takeoff weight lb=16000 |eng1 number=1 |eng1 name=Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67F |eng1 type=turboprop |eng1 shp=1600 |prop blade number=5 |prop name=Hartzell Propeller HC-B3TN |prop note= |max speed kts=200 |cruise speed kts=160 |range nmi=1600 |endurance=10 hours |ceiling ft=25000 |armament=*8 hardpoints for up to payload, including but not limited to: ** or smart bombs **8 × AGM-114 Hellfire laser guided missiles **38 × Hydra 70 folding fin aerial rockets **2 × GAU-19 .50-calibre (12.7×99 mm) gunpods }} See also * Ayres Thrush * Cessna 188 * Grumman AgCat * Piper PA-25 Pawnee * PZL-106 Kruk * PZL-Mielec M-18 Dromader *Basler BT-67 References ;Notes ;Bibliography *Hoyle, Craig. "World Air Forces Directory". Flight International, 13–19 December 2011. pp. 26–52. * Jackson, Paul. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004. Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Information Group, 2003. ISBN 0-7106-2537-5. * Keijsper, Gerard. "Water-Bombers Required!" Air Forces Monthly, London: Key Publishing, July 2008 Issue. * External links * http://www.airtractor.com/ * http://www.airtractoreurope.com/ * airliners.net * http://802u.com/ AT-802 Category:1990s United States special-purpose aircraft Category:1990s United States agricultural aircraft Category:Single-engine aircraft Category:Turboprop aircraft Category:Low-wing aircraft Category:Aerial firefighting Category:Floatplanes Category:Amphibious aircraft